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rib

1
[ rib ]
/ rɪb /
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See synonyms for: rib / ribbed / ribbing / ribs on Thesaurus.com

noun
verb (used with object), ribbed, rib·bing.
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Origin of rib

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English rib(b); cognate with Old Frisian rib, reb, Old Icelandic rif, German Rippe; akin to Russian rebró “rib,” Greek orophḗ “roof, ceiling”

OTHER WORDS FROM rib

rib·ber, nounrib·less, adjectiverib·like, adjective

Other definitions for rib (2 of 2)

rib2
[ rib ]
/ rɪb /

verb (used with object), ribbed, rib·bing.
to tease; make fun of.

Origin of rib

2
An Americanism dating back to 1910–15; probably from rib1 (because tickling the ribs provokes laughter)
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use rib in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for rib (1 of 2)

rib1
/ (rɪb) /

noun
verb ribs, ribbing or ribbed (tr)

Derived forms of rib

ribless, adjectiveriblike, adjective

Word Origin for rib

Old English ribb; related to Old High German rippi, Old Norse rif reef 1

British Dictionary definitions for rib (2 of 2)

rib2
/ (rɪb) informal /

verb ribs, ribbing or ribbed
(tr) to tease or ridicule
noun
a joke or hoax

Word Origin for rib

C20: short for rib-tickle (vb)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for rib

rib
[ rĭb ]

Any of a series of long, curved bones extending from the spine and enclosing the chest cavity. In mammals, reptiles, and birds, the ribs curve toward the center of the chest and in most cases attach to the sternum (breastbone). There are 12 pairs of ribs in humans. See more at skeleton.
One of the main veins of a leaf.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Other Idioms and Phrases with rib

rib

see stick to the ribs.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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